27/6/06 (The Star)   - PUTRAJAYA: Malaysia's stagnating palm oil yields and oil extraction rate (OER) must be addressed immediately, said Malaysian Palm Oil Promotion Council chief executive officer Tan Sri Yusof Basiron.

The government has set a target of 35:25 for the oil palm sector to be achieved by 2020. With this target, the sector has to produce 35 tonnes of fresh fruit bunches (FFB) per ha and OER of 25% per year. 

However, over the past five years, both yields and OER had not improved with FFB averaging 18 to 21 tonnes per hectare and OER at 19% to 20% per year, Yusof said when chairing a panel discussion on Dynamic Plantation Husbandry at the end of the Fifth International Planters Conference 2006 organised by The Incorporated Society of Planters (ISP) yesterday.
 
Tan Sri Yusof Basiron (right) at a panel session at the conference Tuesday
Panel speaker, United Plantations Bhd executive director Carl Bek-Nielsen, said productivity was the thrust that would enable local oil palm industry to push the frontiers.

“Local planters cannot allow complacency to set in simply because prices of palm oil are still high,” he said. 

Bek-Nielsen said demand for edible oils including palm oil would continue to rise in the global market and the latest development in green fuel like biofuel and biodiesel would further boost demand going forward.

EPA Management Sdn Bhd estates director Teo Leng suggested using superior planting materials to improve productivity in oil palm estates in Malaysia.

“There is a need to tighten the criteria of mother palms for seed production in Malaysia similar to those in Indonesia and Papua New Guinea which will enable planters to easily attain 23% to 25% OER,” he added.

Malaysia's seed production increased to 81.6 million last year from 38 million in 2001.

“Achieving the 35:25 vision is not an issue but increasing yields and OER is paramount to our palm oil planters if they want to remain competitive in the global market,” Teo said.

Kumpulan Guthrie Bhd group chief executive Datuk Wahab Maskan said the role of human resource capabilities and competencies support needed to be further improved in oil palm plantations.

“ We must improve on our training, development and education system through collaboration between plantation associations and plantation companies as well as plantation companies with universities.”